Andy Cole insisted that two Manchester United legends under Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford were comparable for their remarkable ability in the final third.
The 53-year-old Manchester United legend is regarded as one of the best Premier League strikers of all time and Andy Cole had a sensational spell at Old Trafford.
Iconic former manager Sir Alex Ferguson brought Cole to the Premier League club in 1995 after United snapped up the former England striker from Newcastle.
Cole became a key striking option for the Red Devils and the United legend later forged a remarkable strike partnership with former teammate Dwight Yorke.
The former United striker made 275 appearances under Ferguson at the Red Devils and Cole netted an impressive 121 times and registered 44 assists for the club.
Cole and Dwight Yorke’s memorable partnership is inextricably linked with Ferguson’s United side lifting their continental treble in the 1998-99 campaign.
During his time at Old Trafford, former England international Cole lifted five Premier League titles, a Champions League trophy and two FA Cups with the Red Devils.
Andy Cole drops his biggest praise possible on Man Utd legends Cristiano Ronaldo and Ruud van Nistelrooy
Speaking to ESPN, Manchester United legend Andy Cole was tasked with building his ‘ultimate striker’ using players from both the past and present in football.
The United treble winner revealed that fellow Red Devils legends Ruud van Nistelrooy and Cristiano Ronaldo would be his picks for finishing in his ultimate striker.
Cole has praised Ruud van Nistelrooy in the past and the former Three Lions international shared the pitch with him at the tail end of his Old Trafford spell.
Van Nistelrooy, who arrived at Old Trafford from PSV Eindhoven in 2001, is widely considered one of the best finishers and Premier League strikers of all time.
Cole had already left the Red Devils when legendary former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson brought Cristiano Ronaldo to the club from Sporting CP in 2003.
Ronaldo shot to superstardom during his prolific first spell at the Red Devils and the United and Real Madrid legend is considered one of the best players of all time.
Why Andy Cole left Man Utd and signed for Blackburn Rovers
Cole fell down the pecking order after Ruud van Nistelrooy’s arrival and the United legend admitted that his “pride” stopped him from staying at Old Trafford.
“If I look back on my career now, the things I did then, that’s what I did,” he told The Overlap in May 2024.
“I look back now and think, could I have changed that a little bit? No, because would I have been the player I was?
“The only thing I’d turn around and say, I left United when I had the opportunity to stay but that was me just saying, my pride says I need to go and play football, play as many games as possible.”
Following his Old Trafford exit in 2001, Cole went on to play for the likes of Blackburn Rovers, Fulham and Manchester City before he retired in 2008.
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